


Crushed

by cinnomanchai



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Anime & Manga)
Genre: F/M, lkihsdevlijwdvji
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-05
Updated: 2021-01-05
Packaged: 2021-03-15 13:46:58
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,996
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28564590
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cinnomanchai/pseuds/cinnomanchai
Summary: Jounouchi feels discouraged about whether or not he's wasting his time in Duelist Kingdom and when he's not with the group, Anzu gets curious and wonders why.
Relationships: Jounouchi Katsuya | Joey Wheeler/Mazaki Anzu | Tea Gardner
Comments: 2
Kudos: 2





	Crushed

Disclaimer: I don't own Yugioh at all.

The sun was setting over Duelist Kingdom and once more, Anzu and her friends were preparing to go to sleep.  
Yugi, having dueled the most that day, had fallen asleep quickly.  
Even in his sleep he was clutching his puzzle and Anzu watched it glisten in the reflection of the fire light.  
"That puzzle attracts really weird things," Anzu thought to herself.  
She saw Yugi's face as it was illuminated by the fire they built and it was nice to see his expression so calm and peaceful.  
He needed the rest so Anzu walked around the fire, grateful that they had the opportunity to sleep uninterrupted.  
As Anzu looked to her right, she saw Honda asleep on the opposite side of Yugi.  
He was using his jacket to stay warm and for a brief moment, Anzu had wished that she had planned her outfits better before coming on this island with her friends because her legs were cold.  
Anzu looked back at the fire and made sure it was still burning because the temperature had dropped and she was concerned about everyone freezing.  
The flames were still high so Anzu felt reassured enough to let herself rest.  
Aa Anzu prepared to lay down she noticed that Jounouchi wasn't there.  
She had assumed that he would be back soon but Anzu couldn't remember how long it had been since she had seen him last.  
As Anzu yawned, she looked around for any signs of as to where he could have gone when she suddenly noticed him standing by himself in the distance.  
Jounouchi was so far away that he had appeared small against the shadows of the nearby trees.  
"Why is he all the way over there?" Anzu thought to herself.  
Because his hair was so light, Anzu could see his bangs reflecting the moonlight, so she knew that she was looking at Jounouchi.  
Anzu decided to walk through the grass to approach him.  
Because Anzu couldn't see very well in the dark, she had squinted her eyes as she tried not to trip on anything.  
Occasionally she'd feel a large stick underneath her boot and Anzu had tried not to lose balance as she carefully nudged it away.  
When Anzu was close enough for Jounouchi to hear her, she asked "Are you okay?"  
Her voice was soft and only slightly above a whisper.  
Jounouchi scratched the back of his neck before saying "I'm about as okay as I'm going to be,"  
His voice was quiet and didn't hold it's usual upbeat tone which was very unusual to Anzu.  
Anzu turned to look back towards the water as she stood in silence beside Jounouchi.  
She appreciated the way the moonlight glistened upon the small waves in the lake.  
Jounouchi kept his hands in his pockets as he and Anzu watched the water.  
If so much hadn't happened during their arrival to this island Anzu was sure that just vacationing here would have been interesting enough.  
There were no city lights to drown out the stars so the sky was the clearest that she had ever seen it and the season was just cool enough to deter any bugs that would have otherwise been there.  
Everything had a faint blue hue and the night was so calm and beautiful that Anzu had wished she had a camera.  
That's when Jounouchi's voice quietly broke the silence.  
Anzu turned to look at him as Jounouchi asked "You think I'm a good duelist, right?"  
Anzu was taken aback by the question.  
She wasn't particularly close to Jounouchi because she had known him only as Yugi's friend.  
When she dished on him during his duels, Anzu thought that everything was in good fun because she assumed that he had the kind of ego to handle it.  
Jounouchi had always seemed like the kind of person who radiated confidence and believed in himself to a fault.  
Because of his change in moods, Anzu began to feel guilty as she responded "Yes ... I think you're a good duelist,"  
When Jounouchi heard her, he turned to face the water again and they stood in silence for a few moments before he murmured "Thanks,"  
Unsure of whether she should stay or go back, Anzu focused on the scenery to distract herself.  
Her legs were cold but she didn't want to leave Jounouchi alone, so Anzu took this opportunity to rely admire their surroundings.  
Anzu thought about saying something but small talk seemed insignificant right now and she didn't want to pry.  
Jounouchi seemed like whatever he was thinking about was personal so Anzu wanted to respect that.  
On the other hand, she wondered if allowing him to confide in her would help him feel better about whatever was bothering him.  
The trees rustled in the breeze and the leaves blew together, blending in with the shadows of the night.  
The silhouettes all merged together to become thick black shapes in the distance and Anzu watched them sway in the wind as she tried to think up positive things that she could say to Jounouchi.  
Anzu wasn't sure about the kind of person that Jounouchi was so she wanted to be careful with her words.  
So that's when Anzu had said "Everything is going to be okay,"  
Typically words like that sounded so empty and generic but when Anzu said them, it really sounded like she believed in them.  
Jounouchi looked at Anzu as he asked "Do you really think so?"  
Anzu was certain and it was obvious as she smiled at Jounouchi.  
"I really think so," She reassured.  
Anzu had touched Jounouchi's shoulder and when he did, by instinct, he almost shook her off.  
Jounouchi found himself leaning into her touch though and in that moment he noticed how tense he had become so he relaxed his shoulders.  
When Anzu took her hand away, Jounouchi could hear her footsteps as she walked on the dead grass.  
Because it was so dark, Jounouchi could barely see her in his peripheral vision until he felt Anzu's arms wrap around his torso.  
The breeze seemed to blow ice cold mist towards them from the water and Jounouchi faced it as Anzu hugged him really tightly.  
She said "Your sister's going to be okay," as she loosened her hold.  
Jounouchi smiled as he felt the warmth from her words.  
Anzu had always seemed like she was annoyed with him and Jounouchi assumed that Anzu thought he was stupid.  
Hearing her reassuring words felt important to him because although their exchange was brief, he was beginning to feel like the odds of him being able to help his sister were thin.  
Each new day something else would happen to everyone and just when Jounouchi thought things were making sense again, something else would catch them off guard.  
It felt like the longer that they were on this island, the more serious this tournament had become.  
Dueling didn't feel like a fun card game anymore, so it was hard to preserve Jounouchi's confidence anymore.  
Especially after their incident with Bakura and the strange way Yugi kept changing.  
Anzu had finally let go of Jounouchi and when she did, he immediately missed her warmth.  
"We should go back," Anzu said as she stepped in the direction of the campfire.  
Jounouchi followed her lead and they began their walk back as the dead grass crunched underneath their shoes.  
The bright orange fire was the only thing visible in the darkness and as they walked, Jounouchi glanced at Anzu while she was beside him.  
Her long black sweater looked thin and her white boots must have been scuffed.  
He wasn't sure why she wore the clothes that she wore but he felt a chill from underneath his thick coat.  
Jounouchi knew, for certain, that Anzu was cold too.  
They had finally made it to the camp fire and as they stopped walking, Anzu stood beside Jounouchi before she smiled at him.  
The warmth from the fire was very inviting.  
Anzu had walked around the campfire until she was between Yugi and Honda.  
She had moved to sit on her knees as she held her palms up for warmth.  
Anzu's eyes watched as the flames flickered and she didn't see Jounouchi as he stared at her.  
Jounouchi nervously held his breath for a moment before looking over at Yugi and after a few seconds, he glanced the other way as he looked at Honda.  
They were both sleeping peacefully and Anzu was the only one awake.  
Jounouchi decided to sit by Anzu again and Anzu didn't seem to mind as she greeted him with a smile.  
"If we ever do this again, remind me to pack a suitcase," Anzu joked.  
Jounouchi had chuckled with her but it didn't feel right as long as he was wearing his jacket.  
He decided to slip the jacket off of his shoulders as he said "You should take this,"  
For some reason, the obvious answer for helping Anzu stay warm just hadn't crossed his mind yet and until now, he hadn't really considered offering her his jacket.  
The moment Jounouchi offered, he felt really nervous, hoping that Anzu wouldn't find him creepy.  
Anzu, who was enjoying the warmth from the fire, looked at Jounouchi's jacket as her expression changed.  
"Are you sure?" Anzu asked. She looked at the jacket and then back at Jounouchi.  
He was wearing a single white tee shirt and in the dim light, she could barely see the hair standing up on his arms.  
Although Anzu wanted to accept his offer for herself, she didn't want Jounouchi to be uncomfortable, especially on her account.  
Jounouchi reluctantly insisted, however.  
"Yes," he said quietly, rubbing his upper arms with his hands.  
As Anzu took the jacket Jounouchi had moved closer to the flames.  
His back was still cold but he decided that this would be good enough and it felt like the right thing to do.  
Especially since Anzu made it clear that they were friends.  
"Thank you," Anzu said quietly.  
The two continued to sit by each other making small talk until Anzu adjusted to laying on her side. It wasn't long until Anzu had fallen asleep and fortunately, Jounouchi's jacket was just large enough to fit comfortably on most of her upper body like a blanket.  
Jounouchi yawned as he tried to figure out what he was going to do or where he wanted to sleep.  
He couldn't stop thinking about Shizuka or her surgery or Kaiba and the way he taunted everyone out of sheer spite.  
Jounouchi was now laying between Anzu and the fire and as he stared at it, his exhausted mind drifted to his recent duels, his drunken father, and Yugi's puzzle.  
Though he wasn't sure if he could ever convince himself to just aimlessly have faith in everything, he appreciated that Anzu was concerned for him and just before he fell asleep, he wondered if Anzu was seeing anyone already.  
"That's probably weird though," he thought to himself.  
They were friends.  
Just because Anzu had checked up on him didn't mean anything.  
It didn't matter how much he appreciated the hug or her company, Jounouchi didn't know Anzu very well and developing feelings for her wouldn't do anything good for anyone.  
As Jounouchi shut his eyes he quickly drifted into sleep and when he did, he had leaned closer to the fire so his forearms were warmer.  
Anzu had woken up briefly and noticed that they were still beside each other.  
She was on her side so she had turned to face him and the last thing she saw before she fell asleep was the outline of the light illuminating Jounouchi's hair and his white tee shirt scuffed with dirt around the right shoulder.  
Because Anzu was barely awake, Anzu had shut her eyes again and thought about what it would be like to talk with Jounouchi alone again.  
He was kind of cute.


End file.
